Printer Friendly Version - Petition Won't Put Propane on Jan. 21 PZC Agenda

The fall of 2014, when this photo was taken, was the last time residents had a chance to voice their concerns about bringing bulk propane to town. A petition arrived at Town Hall Jan. 15 signed by citizens asking for the opportunity to speak out; even though J.J. Sullivan Fuel Co.'s wetlands application is under DEEP review and remains out of town hands.Pam Johnson/The Sound

Seeking to re-open the conversation on allowing a 60,000 gallon bulk propane facility in town, grassroots group "Concerned Citizens of North Branford" filed a petition at Town Hall with 196 signatures on Jan.15. The petition asked to have the Planning and Zoning Commission include a public hearing on the site plan application for 40 Ciro Road once it becomes an active agenda item again. The petition included 14 pages of signatures as well as 66 signed online and was delivered to all Town Council members, all PZC members, the Town Attorney, Town Manger and Town Planner.

The petition was read into the record at the Jan. 19 Town Council meeting by Mayor Michael Doody but no further discussion occurred. It arrived too late to have its request added to agenda for discussion at the Jan. 21 Planning and Zoning Commission (PZC) agenda, said Town Planner Carey Duques, but Duques told Zip06 she distributed it to the PZC that night.

For over a year, the property in question has fallen out of discussion at town land agency meetings including the Inlands Wetlands Agency and PZC, where the 2014 agenda item has been rolling forward without action.

That's because the wetlands and watercourses site plan submitted by J.J. Sullivan Fuel Co. remains with the state Dept. of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP), where it has been under review, at the request of applicant, since Jan. 2015. Prior to that, the application was a contentious subject at town land agency meetings, drawing sign-carrying crowds of citizens with concerns. The last town action taken regarding propane storage, which the group believes could effect the application at 40 Ciro Road, was the PZC's decision in late 2015 to approve an amendment, brought by citizen Chris Kranick, to further regulate any bulk propane storage companies to be constructed in approved zones.

However, until the DEEP decision on the 40 Ciro Road application in is returned to the town, no action can be taken on the J.J. Sullivan site plan application at the town land agency level.

While a sentence in the petition's statement of purpose, "The case was sent to the DEEP and is just now being settled," seemed to indicate that some activity might be forthcoming, Duques said as far as she knows there has been no change to the DEEP's on-going site plan review process. She said she checked in with the DEEP this week for a status update, but as yet had not received a response.

Duques said she also wants to find out whether the request can be added as a public hearing at a PZC meeting.

"In the interim, I'm going to work with town attorney to answer the question of whether can we have a public hearing and what the time line would be," Duques said.

In part, the petition reads, "...we ask that the citizens be allowed to speak about this issue. It has proven to be of tremendous concern to the citizens of this town. Many citizens of this town will be directly impacted by this type of industry. We live here, we work here, we go to school here, we raise our families here. WE are here. It is up to all of us to protect the integrity of our town history and culture, ensure it's safety and conserve its value."